IRS List Released of Conservative Groups Targeted Reveals Much Bigger Scope Than Originally Thought

Remember way back in the day — like a couple of years ago — when Obama’s IRS got busted trying to target conservative groups for using their First Amendment right to speak out against his radical agenda and reelection?

Well, it seems the list of groups that were picked on by the big government bully has finally been released.

The one thing folks seemed to notice from the release of the list was that the scope of groups targeted was much bigger than originally thought.

Three years ago, the IRS admitted to targeting conservative groups, specifically, for investigation. Now the government body has released a near-complete list of the organizations it targeted. Some 426 organizations were named on this most recent list (a far cry from the 298 quoted by IRS inspector general back in 2013). An additional 40 organizations were not named as they opted out for being part of a class-action lawsuit. The Washington Times reports:

The tax agency filed the list last month as part of a court case after a series of federal judges, fed up with what they said was the agency’s stonewalling, ordered it to get a move on. The case is a class-action lawsuit, so the list of names is critical to knowing the scope of those who would have a claim against the IRS.

But even as it answers some questions, the list raises others, including exactly when the targeting stopped, and how broadly the tax agency drew its net when it went after nonprofits for unusual scrutiny.

The government released names of 426 organizations. Another 40 were not released as part of the list because they had already opted out of being part of the class-action suit.

That total is much higher than the 298 groups the IRS‘ inspector general identified back in May 2013, when investigators first revealed the agency had been subjecting applications to long — potentially illegal — delays, and forcing them to answer intrusive questions about their activities. Tea party and conservative groups said they was the target of unusually heavy investigations and longer delays.

Edward D. Greim, the lawyer who’s pursuing the case on behalf of NorCal Tea Party Patriots and other members of the class, said the list also could have ballooned toward the end of the targeting as the IRS, once it knew it was being investigated, snagged more liberal groups in its operations to try to soften perceptions of political bias.

“Based on these changes, which to date remain unexplained, a very real possibility — if not probability — exists that the IRS modified its targeting in light of the investigations, packing its own internal lists of targeted groups to support its preferred narrative, including by adding ideologically diverse groups.”

The report states that most of the groups who were targeted contained the words “tea,” “patriot,” “liberty,” “912,” or referred in some way to the Constitution.

Yeah, I’d say that sounds a whole heck of a lot like targeting conservatives, wouldn’t you? Lots of people tried to deny there was any such bias early on, but I’d say this pretty much proves the IRS was abusing its power in an attempt to silence those who disagreed with the president’s agenda.

While it’s great to finally receive this information, what I really want to see is someone pay for this nonsense and be held accountable for the abuse that transpired.

The First Amendment is one of the most precious protected rights we possess, and in order to prevent the government from just trampling it into the dirt we need to fight tooth and nail to preserve it. That means action must be taken to ensure such measures never occur again, and those responsible for this crime are put behind bars.

This is just one more reason to add to the list of a million that already exist to dismantle the IRS and get it out of our lives.

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